JYOTISH OVERVIEW
http://www.puja.net/Pages/Jyotish/JyotishPhilosophy.htm
http://www.natalcharts.biz/vedic_astrology_articles/jyotish_vedic_astrology.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jyotiṣa
http://www.desitip.com/servlet/drenderer?sel=Astrology
http://www.maharishiyagya.org/jyotish/
ttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zXxdAbpjqo
What is JYOTISH?
Jyotish, a complimentary (metaphysical) science to ancient Indian astronomy meaning "light" in Sanskrit, is the “eye of the Vedas” and the highest auxillary limb to Vedic knowledge along with Ayurveda (health) that was taught in ancient India as a preparation for understanding the Vedas from a scientific point of view (astronomy and the Gods as forces of nature - Nakshatras).
Ultimately, it helps along with satwic food, bhajans or sacred music, contemplative meditation (leading to one-pointed concentration) and the Gaytari mantra in raising ones vibration and opening ones inner intuitive eye. By exercising the analytical, logical left brain with the symbolic right brain, this awakens and allows the inner jyotish to bring the intelligence of the mind into the heart such that you become one (in the light of consciousness) with the object of contemplation (ie. the chart & person). I hope this is enough of a reason for it to be eventually bought back into an associative, metaphoric method in schools. If only to make people learn by association and metaphor as well as by the usual literal and mathematical ways, the language of jyotish could help spiritualise education (see the JiVa5 edu-create proposal - via http://www.scribd.com/doc/59746774/Edu-Create-Book or http://www.cyberax.eu/book/2091309/edu-create-book).
Learning Vedic astrology is like learning a new language, which in this case is a metaphoric one, with each planet corresponding to many areas of life (ie. symbol within a metaphysical context/comprehension of consciousness). These have to be learned and applied through experimenting with the rules of Vedic astrology; using ones observation and inductive logic to make symbolic associations and synthesizing astrological confluences in order to start to "see" trends that pop out of a chart to match actual observational facts.
Often it helps to start by taking a psychological approach to understanding oneself before venturing into predictions, as destiny is a reflection of our character. With this approach astrology becomes a tool for self-knowledge (of our individual nature, habits, strengths and weakness) and thereby becomes a spiritual assistance towards liberation through understanding and insight into ourselves, others and life. With more and more practice in reading charts confidence will begin to grow and its exercise on the intuitive muscle will begin to flex, allowing the left brain analytical logic to find a portal through the visuo-spatial nature of symbolism to awaken the bindu chakra to see and not just infer relative truths.
The Avatar of the Age, Sathya Sai Baba, has acknowledged astrology as a divine science, but what He told his disciple/devotee, Hislop (in the book "Conversations with God"), is that most essential is the purity of life and discrimination (ie. Gayatri mantra to awaken the ajna chakra) to sensitise this process and vision (as well as the fact that the stars are gradually changing in relationship to each other over time). Otherwise it becomes very difficult to be receptive to the higher vibrations needed to unfold these gifts of the mind. And despite clairvoyance not being essential for self-realisation, astrology, more than this, allows a deeper tolerance and vision of the unity of life through reading the beauty of Gods laws and oneness of consciousness.
A technical note should be made here. Vedic astrology is based on a Sidereal zodiac which uses fixed stars to divide up the longitudinal ecliptic, as opposed to the western "tropical zodiac" which is determined by the point where the celestial equator crosses the ecliptic; called the Vernal equinox (Aries). The western zodiac is a "moving" super-imposed zodiac based on seasons, and is moving away from the fixed zodiac because of the "shifting of the equinoxes".
Many people justify both systems by considering the tropical zodiac as more solar, outer based and the Sidereal more inner, lunar based. From a purely astronomical point of view, neither the Vedic nor the Western zodiac's twelve signs exactly correlate to a 30 degree band related to the actual constellations. Twelve, is a number not just used to act as a co-ordinates for locating stars on the ecliptic, but also used as a metaphysical division of the space for understanding harmonics around the sphere of our solar system (Note Jupiter, the planet of "ether/space" and cosmic law, takes 12 years to circle the zodiac)
However, Vedic astrological co-ordinates approximate much more accurately to the actual constellation's positions of signs. So, for example, when someone following Western astrology says they are an "Aries", this in fact means they are like "spring', whereas there Sun sign position at birth was most likely in the constellation of Pisces (the Vedic Sidereal astrological position - around a 24 degree shift back to the "fixed" zodiac from the Tropical Zodiac).
Yet, according to the below link, ancient India (north vs south) used both systems of astrology (Tropical vs Sidereal) until they got mixed around BC 1400 to BC 200:-
i) Nigama (Vedic Aryan Brahmanic) system was Tropical Sayana astrology based on four cardinal points (equinoxes and solstices) coupled with the use of a fixed framework i.e. Nakshatra Chakra
2) Agama (Non vedic i.e. Saivaite, Naga, Tantric, Jain etc) system followed Nirayana Sidereal fixed astrology based more on the 12 signs ie. Rasi Chakra
http://www.ancientindianastrology.com/cmsa/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=143:nakshatra-lagna&catid=39:nakshatra-jyotisha&Itemid=61
In addition, another point should be made that many scientists view astrology as superstition based on fiction and not fact, due to the apparently illogical connection of stars influence on human life when they are many light years away and having no temporal relationship to earth. However, apart from just a linear connection to Earth through time and space, there is the aspect of resonance based on an underlying principle of element "ether". This allows for stars to influence not just by "rays" but by metaphysical correspondence of vibrational resonance. In this sense, the indian science of consciousness, has an elaborate holistic and metaphysical approach (based on the matrix, cosmic law & sacred goemetry of "prakriti" or nature) of integrating Jyotish (Vedic astrology) with Yoga, Vastu, Ayurveda and Veda and, ideally, Jyotish should be learnt in tandem with these for a greater synthesis, confidence and insight into this subject.
A note on tropical western astrology
It is the author's opinion, having studied western tropical astrology and then Vedic sidereal astrology, that Vedic astrology is a much more ancient, complex and comprehensive system of astrology. Whilst the West developed astrology through influences from Pythagorus (who visited India) to Plotemy, its advanced application today appear limited to aspects, mid-points, configurations, progressions and transits. These are all included and subsumed in Jyotish. Not only that, many things that appear to be discovered, such as angular strength by Gangeluin or harmonics by Adley, already existed in the rules of Jyotish. Therefore, it appears to me, that the Western system is taking a slower, more scientific approach to arrive at and confirm what the rishis or seers of ancient India already knew by divine sight.
SYNOPSIS of JYOTISH
THE EYE OF THE VEDAS; THE STUDY OF LIGHT AND LIFE, TIME AND SPACE; AS A PLAY OF CONSIOUSNESS; TO SEE THE UNITY IN DIVERSITY; FOR SELF-INQUIRY & KNOWLEDGE, APPERCEPTION OF THE ONENESS, ADVAITA
Involves
A) OBSERVATION + INDUCTIVE LOGIC = EXPERIMENTAL/SCIENTIFIC =>
B) LOGIC + SYMBOLISM = METAPHORIC ASSOCIATIVE LANGUAGE =>
C) EXPERIENCE (practice) + REASON (ANALYSIS + SYNTHESIS) of symbolic language => INTUITION
HOW DOES IT ASSOCIATE?
Jyotish is a symbolic language using
i. 12 Signs
ii. 9 Planet
iii. 12 Houses from Ascendant(s)
combining their
i. Inner (eg character in question)
ii. Relationship (to the character eg father)
iii. Outer (world)
Indicators
(karakas = symbolic correspondences to life affairs)
…….synthesized into a metaphoric interpretation (story) of a chart that trains the mind to sensitize its observational, perceptual and intuitive powers to lead from analysis of what might be to the clairvoyance of what is. It is important to recognize which representative meaning of a symbol (from sign, planet & house) one is choosing (its inner, relationship or outer meaning) to associate with in combining them to make sense of and see patterns in a chart by free association. This brings in some structure (memory) around which insight leading to intuition can work.
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